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Eating oily fish 'can extend life'

Regularly eating oily fish can add an extra two years onto your life, according to a new study.

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and the University of Washington found that people aged over 65 with higher blood levels of the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish lived 2.2 years longer than normal.

"Although eating fish has long been considered part of a healthy diet, few studies have assessed blood omega-3 levels and total deaths in older adults," said Dariush Mozaffarian, associate professor in the Department of Epidemiology at HSPH and lead author of the study.

It is thought omega-3 fatty acids help brain development and also reduce inflammation in the cardiovascular system.

The study was conducted over a period of 16 years and involved 2,700 volunteers aged 65 and older.

Generally, each of the participants were healthy at the start of the research and their conditions were monitored regularly. The study is published in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.